All Rise Newsletter 2022

All RISE
THE TRANSPORT INNOVATION AGENCY | www.risedm.com
An introduction from CEO
and Founder Scott James
Embracing technology is vital to the ongoing
success of bus and coach operations
SCOTT JAMES
CEO & Founder,
Rise Digital Media Ltd
“Operators now,
more so than ever
before, have a better
understanding of what
customers want from
their bus and coach
services”
If we didn’t already know it then the last
couple of years have clearly demonstrated
the vital role that technology and digital
solutions play in the planning and provision
of safe, reliable and efficient passenger
transport services.
The increased use, capability and
understanding of technology during this
period has compelled operators to work
closely with digital partners such as Rise
to develop and establish more effective
communications with passengers and staff at
a time when school services, local bus routes,
vehicle capacities and operating conditions
have been subject to regular change. It
has also given operators a much better
understanding and visibility of the services
they provide; with data around passenger
movements, route and service efficiencies
and vehicle loads - through web and app
enhancements –readily available in real-time.
Embracing technology is vital to the ongoing
success of bus and coach operations. It is
so much more than ETMs, vehicle tracking
and journey planning tools; the increased
availability and use of apps and m-ticketing
has allowed operators to get to know who
their passengers are and how and when they
travel, while giving customers instant access to
the tools they need to plan, purchase tickets
and take bus and coach trips. Perhaps most
importantly, the greater use of technology and
improved communications means operators
now, more so than ever before, have a better
understanding of what customers want from
their bus and coach services.
Since 2010, my team and I have worked
closely with the industry to develop and
introduce digital solutions which offer real
business efficiencies and help make bus and
coach travel a more attractive proposition
for new and existing passengers. To support
this work we have recently established a
dedicated ‘product and service steering
group’ of operators who represent and have
knowledge of the key sectors we serve –
commercial bus, corporate travel, coach day
trips & excursions and school transport. The
group is tasked with making sure our products
and services remain both relevant and useful,
as well as looking at solutions to tomorrow’s
challenges.
If you would like to know more about the
role of this group or the work or Rise DM, then
please do not hesitate to contact me or one
of the team.
EURO BUS
EXPO 2022
SHOW
EDITION
PAGE | 2 & 3
News - a summary of news
stories and updates from
the past year
PAGE | 4 & 5
Introducing NextStop, the
complete digital solution
for school, college and
university services
PAGE | 6
We are Rise Digital
Media - meet the
team
SUPPORTING THE PASSENGER TRANSPORT INDUSTRY SINCE 2010
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IN THE NEWS
2022 at a glance
Ipswich Buses
launches new
mobile-friendly
website
Working in partnership
with Rise, Ipswich Buses launched a
new mobile-friendly website which
provides passengers with simple
and instant access to the very latest
service information, timetables, live
vehicle tracking, journey planning,
news and more.
Ipswich Buses General Manager
Steve Bryce said: “We recognise
that our customers need instant access to
accurate and up to date service information,
and our new and improved website from Rise
gives that at the touch of a button.”
Above; Scott James, CEO
of Rise Digital Media and Steve Bryce,
General Manager of Ipswich Buses
Rise DM announces
BODS solution for bus
and coach operators
With the DfT making
it clear that in-scope
operations (in England outside of
London) are required to comply with
BODS regulations for fares, timetables
and vehicle locations, Rise announced
its BODS-compliant vehicle tracking
service.
Speaking with routeone magazine,
Chris Nice, Operations Director at Rise,
said: “Through our NextStop app we
have developed a simple and costeffective
way to report live vehicle
location data, via a SIRI VM feed, direct
to BODS.”
2 | www.risedm.com
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IN THE NEWS
Rise DM CEO addresses
annual CoachMarque
Conference
Following a two-year break, the
CoachMarque annual conference
returned to the East Midlands Airport hotel
in March. Joining the distinguished line-up of
expert industry speakers was Rise DM’s Scott
James who spoke about how digital solutions
remain key to supporting school transport
operations by providing much needed visibility
of passenger and vehicle movements.
Rise add Push Notifications
to Bushub platform
Following discussions and
feedback received from
customers, Rise announced that
it had added a new feature to its Bushub
platform which allows operators to send push
notifications direct to registered passengers’
handsets.
Following the launch Rise hosted a series
of training sessions where operators learned
how to create, send and schedule push
notifications to dedicated customer groups
(by service, route, region). Rise operator
customers have so far processed 950k push
notifications through the platform.
Rise achieves Cyber
Essentials accreditation
Having completed a rigorous
assessment and online interview
process, Rise has achieved the
Government-recognised Cyber Essentials
(CE) accreditation. With only 1 in 5 businesses
currently CE approved, the accreditation
shows that Rise has the required IT systems
and processes in place to protect the
organisation (and the customer data it holds)
against a whole range of the most common
cyber attacks.
Rise retains ISO 9001
certification
Following an extensive
presentation and auditing process
it was confirmed (August) that
Rise had retained its ISO accreditation.
ISO 9001 is the world’s most recognised
quality management system standard,
established by the International Organisation
for Standardization (ISO). Attaining ISO
9001 demonstrates that the organisation
implements clear, repeatable processes to
maintain a quality service for customers every
time.
Coach Operators choose
Rise for management
of school, college and
university transport
contracts
Rise DM has entered the school transport
market with its NextStop mobility platform.
Working alongside some of the UK’s
best known coach operators during the
development of the platform, NextStop
now provides a
complete digital
solution for student
account registrations,
e-ticketing, vehicle
tracking, child
safeguarding and the
overall management
of school transport
services.
Commenting, Chris
Nice, Operations
Director at Rise said:
“The rollout of our NextStop platform for
school transport service providers has been
carefully planned over the last 12 months,
taking onboard feedback from operators,
schools, parents and passenger groups. The
platform currently hosts over 350k passenger
accounts, while supporting thousands of
vehicle movements and ticket transactions
each day. The platform has been further
developed to keep pace with changing
operational landscapes, travel patterns and
passenger behaviours, many of which have
arrived as a result of the Covid pandemic.”
www.risedm.com | 3
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SPOTLIGHT ON
Introducing NextStop - the complete digital
solution for the planning and management of
school, college and university services
Rise has recently entered the school
transport market with its NextStop
mobility platform. Working alongside
some of the UK’s best known coach
operators during the development of the
platform, NextStop has been enhanced to
provide a complete digital solution for student
account registrations, e-ticketing, vehicle
tracking, child safeguarding and the overall
management of school transport services.
The NextStop mobility platform - which
includes supporting driver, ground staff,
passenger and parent apps – also provides
transport operators with the tools they need
to create, manage and oversee the day-to-day
running of school services, giving increased
visibility of everything from passenger loadings
(by stop), to service punctuality, online ticket
sales and driver performance.
NextStop is a cloud-based Mobility-as-a-
Service platform currently used by over 60 bus
and coach operators.
Platform overview
The NextStop Mobility Platform offers an entire
ecosystem of pre-built mobility services with
integrations readily available to tackle the
most challenging aspects of dynamic transport
solutions delivery.
“They deliver the balance
between personal customer
service and excellent product
delivery. Their platform is key
for some of our clients and
continues to be our choice
in passenger interface and
service delivery for new
contracts”
Tom Parkin
Commercial Manager
Go-Ahead London
4 | www.risedm.com
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SPOTLIGHT ON
Features
● Passenger & Driver Apps
● Detailed reporting & analytics dashboard
● Route building and timetable creation tools
● Vehicle tracking
● Mobile ticketing
● Seat reservations
● Ticket scanning
● Safe & secure online payment portal
Benefits
● White labelled platform
● Rapid deployment
● Complete digital solution
● BODs integrated
● Scalable pricing
● Greater visibility and understanding of your operations
Self governance and complete control
www.risedm.com | 5
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IN THE NEWS
We are Rise Digital Media
The team at Rise brings together over 60 years of combined experience in providing digital and technical
solutions to the bus and coach industry. Our team of digital systems experts and transport professionals
have developed and launched a wide range of high-quality mobility -as-a-service products,
notably NextStop and Bushub, which are used by hundreds of operators and hundreds
of thousands of passengers each and every day.
Come and meet some of the team….
SCOTT JAMES
Chief Executive Officer
With a strong background and experience
in digital design & development, Scott
established Rise Digital Media in 2010.
Over the past 12 years he has developed
a great understanding of the public
transport industry and, in particular, the
digital solutions and products needed by
operators and their passengers to make
bus and coach travel the simple and easy
choice.
In addition to running the operation,
Scott spends a great deal of time creating
and refining the company’s digital products
in order to ensure that they remain fit for
purpose, cost effective and beneficial to all
parties.
CHRISTOPHER NICE
Operations Director
Chris joined Rise at the back end of
2022 following a 20-year career with
the industry’s leading trade body, the
Confederation of Passenger Transport
(CPT). During his time with CPT, most
recently as Director of Membership &
Communications, Chris was seconded to
both First Bus and Greener Journeys where
he gained a wealth of experience in both
the operational and customer-focussed
sides of the bus and coach industry.
Chris’ key responsibilities include
future product developments, providing
customers with support and training and
raising awareness of the vital role of digital
solutions to the public transport industry.
KELVIN THURSBY
Senior Software Engineer
Having worked at Rise Digital Media since
2011, Kelvin has lead responsibility for the
development and architecture for both
‘greenfield’ and ‘brownfield’ applications
(new and existing apps).
He has developed and implemented a
number of complex algorithms requiring
problem-solving skills on a variety of
projects such as Fintech, Travel and
Management Information Systems and
Content Management Systems. Kelvin says
that “the creative and flexible nature of the
business allows him to regularly engage in
new features and system updates”, making
Rise both an “enjoyable” and “invigorating”
place to work.
STEPHEN CONYERS
Front End Developer
The youngster of the team, Stephen
graduated from Greenwich University with
a first-class degree in Computer Science
in 2018.
Having joined Rise shortly after
graduating, Stephen works closely with
Kelvin, Rob and the technical team on a
variety of front and back-end projects.
He also works closely with customers,
providing training where necessary, to
respond to and resolve any technical issues
and support requests.
ROB JAMES
Senior Software Engineer
With a degree and background in Graphic
Design, Rob joined Rise in 2014 as a senior
front-end developer. He is responsible
for creating and continually developing
our suite of digital products, while making
important decisions on the development
stack.
Rob has over 14 years’ experience in
software development and is key to all
product front-end (look and feel), related
products and further enhancements to our
various mobile apps.
ANDREW MORGAN
Head of Design
As our creative lead, Andrew brings a
wealth of experience and expertise
having worked for both digital and design
agencies.
At Rise Digital Media, Andrew develops
user experience strategies and creative
concepts for web, mobile and applications.
6 | www.risedm.com
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RISE BY NUMBERS
No.1
Our No. 1 mission is to: “Equip operators with
digital solutions which offer business efficiencies
and help make bus and coach travel a more
attractive proposition for new and existing
passengers”
140
Over 140 Rise developed
passenger apps currently
available across Apple and
Play Stores
¼Our live bus tracking pages
viewed over ¼ million times by
bus and coach passengers
in the last year
60
We work with over 60 UK bus and coach
operators, including Big 5 groups and
small family-owned coach companies
£10m
£10m worth of ticket transactions
supported through the platform
so far in 2022
950k
950k push notifications and 300k
system generated emails sent
by operators through Rise
platforms since the summer
+8m+8 million ticket
downloads
390k
390k unique customer account
registrations
2010
Established in 2010
5,000
Over five thousand* bus and coach
services tracked every day
* on school days
1 million
Close to 1 million mobile (QR code)
bus and coach tickets sold via the
Rise platform in the last year
430,000
Our bespoke coach seat reservations system has supported
over 430,000 bookings in the last 12 months
9001
Rise Digital Media is
ISO 9001 accredited
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What our customers say
“The transition from our antiquated school
transport system to NextStop has been
seamless: from training sessions, zoom calls
and regular emails to tweaking the system
to fit with our needs, everything has been
handled by Rise team with professionalism
and friendliness. They have gone above and
beyond to ensure that NextStop works for us
and our customers.”
“Working with Rise DM has helped
us to achieve our online aspirations
across a number of Rotala Subsidiaries.
Their understanding of the individual
requirements of the businesses within
the group has enabled us to provide
customers with a more interactive
solution to service information and
m-ticketing.”
Katie Smith
Elite Services Limited
Sue Willdigg
Rotala PLC
“We have thoroughly enjoyed working
with Rise on this first stage of our digital
comms. They have been efficient and
adept at resolving any issues. The first
stage has moved swiftly, enabling us to
bring about much needed comms across
our rural footprint.”
“We are delighted to have worked with
our partners at Rise Digital Media during
the production and launch of the new
website. In addition to providing quick and
easy access to timetables, ticket and fares
information, the site’s live vehicle tracking
page provides users with the exact
locations of their buses along individual
routes on an interactive map.”
Marrianne del Garbutt
Brylaine
Steve Bryce
Ipswich Buses
“Lynx have been working closely with
Rise DM for over two years now and we’ve
found that the products they offer are
invaluable to our customers. The tracking
through the web platform and app, for
example, provide reassurance to our
customers that in the event a bus has
been delayed, that it’s still on its way.”
“Working with Rise DM on the
implementation of their NextStop App for
a number of Universities and staff shuttles
over the years has been hugely successful.
The support provided by the team has
been second to none and they always
work tirelessly to explore every solution to
our unique requirements.”
Graham Smith
Lynx Bus
Christian Fahy
National Express Transport
Solutions
Rise Digital Media Limited
50 Baldwyn’s Park, Bexley DA5 2BA
www.risedm.com | info@risedm.com
020 3422 9115 | @risedm.com
SUPPORTING THE PASSENGER TRANSPORT INDUSTRY SINCE 2010
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